Metaverse in E-commerce: Opportunity to Bridge the Gap Between Your eCommerce and In-store Business

Metaverse: Future of the E-commerce

In the fall of 2021, after the rebranding of Facebook, everyone started talking about metaverse. Today the market capitalization of web 2.0. companies in the metaverse is 14.8 billion dollars, meaning the concept can be useful for a wide variety of Internet companies in different industries.

E-commerce in the metaverse is expected to grow at a CAGR of 39% between 2022 and 2027, increasing by 85,885 million dollars, making it a very appealing market for retailers. It is already called “a dream for merchants” for its endless possibilities to sell digital goods. And with only 2% of retail companies invested in metaverse and relatively low web 3.0. market cap, it is still a niche to be filled. Here at ProCoders we are ready to tell you what tangible benefits your business can have and how to put them into practice! 

Key takeaways: 

• The concept of metaverse is interpreted in different ways by tech giants, but in general, it is a manifestation of real life in virtual space. It is a fully functioning economy offering previously unavailable operability of data and digital assets with the help of (but not limited by) VR and AR. 
• The virtual world is a lucrative market for E-commerce companies and retail. By implementing metaverse technologies companies can gain multiple benefits like strengthening customer loyalty, leveling up customer experience, and improving the operability of the business in general. 
• The most popular way to incorporate metaverse is by offering customers to try products using AR/VR in real time, however, NFTs are a real buzzword that is gaining traction and can attract new customers who want to buy exclusive virtual assets. 

Key E-commerce Challenges

In the last few years, E-commerce faced difficulties that only a deep business transformation can overcome.

LTV

Customer’s Lifetime Value (LTV) shows the profit from the client for the entire time of working with him. For business, this translates into a simple rule: the more regular customers – the more income, since according to a Harvard Business Review study, acquiring a new customer can be from 5 to 25 times more expensive. Problem is, with a plethora of E-commerce stores offering approximately the same assortment, the churn rate exceeds the retention rate, posing a great challenge for businesses. 

Product Return Rate

Here’s a disheartening difference between E-commerce and brick-and-mortar shops: more than 30% of online purchases are returned as opposed to the return rate of 8% in traditional stores. Main reasons for that are mis-matched or scarce item descriptions, sizing issues or customers receiving a damaged item. 

Competition with In-Store Sales

Buying goods offline has one undeniable advantage: an opportunity to try on an outfit or accessory without waiting for its delivery, and immediately understand whether the thing fits or not. Not even mentioning better customer service that comes along with in-store shopping. 

Customers Experience Level Up

With increasing competition both offline and online, businesses need to constantly come up with ideas on how to stand out from the crowd and offer a unique experience to their customers. Be it an AI-driven customer personalization, using AR for elevating customer’s digital experiences, or a customer service chatbot with GPT-3 – the need to distinguish yourself from the rest is crucial.

Explosive Metaverse Benefits for Retail

When it comes to Ecommerce metaverse is the tool that allows businesses to do away with most of these challenges by introducing a revolutionary opportunity to combine online platforms with in-store experience thus creating a hybrid shopping. At ProCoders we have prepared a complete list of benefits of using Metaverse in E-Commerce that will not leave you indifferent!

Key Metaverse Technologies for Ecommerce

Blockchain

 It is impossible to talk about metaverse and Ecommerce without mentioning blockchain – a foundational technology of metaverse. One of the most notorious challenges associated with online shopping is security and a transparent decentralized system like blockchain eliminates most of the privacy concerns. It can also operate as a reliable and safe payment processor, killing multiple birds with one stone.

And then there’s the matter of facilitating the supply chain and improving overall efficiency. Deloitte mentions a number of companies that use Blockchain in their work: for example a B2B trading platform that connects buyers, sellers, logistics providers and other entities. Blockchain is also one of the building blocks of the web 3.0., which has a lot in common with Metaverse. If you are wondering what is web 3.0, we already answered it in our blog, so check it out!

Extended Reality (AR and VR)

Introducing Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) to metaverse commerce was the needed step to shift customer paradigms from “Click-and-buy” to “Experience-and-buy”. Google Survey stated that 66% of people would love to interact with AR while shopping. Deloitte also suggests that AR experiences also lead to 94% higher conversion rates.

The most well-known use of AR in metaverse Ecommerce is allowing users to either try clothes on or see how a physical object will look in their room. This will help customers make informed purchasing decisions and reduce return rates. 

Non-Fungible Tokens (NFT)

Non-fungible tokens show the ownership of a unique digital asset and are mostly used by well-known brands in fashion, gaming, sports and music industries. Nike, for example, tied a pair of sneakers that exist in the real world to its digital copy. NFTs can be used in multiple different ways: to sell digital collectibles, to pre-launch products, to create digital duplicates (and follow Nike’s example), to build stronger customer loyalty by offering fan tokens or moving loyalty cards entirely to blockchain. 

Benefits and Monetization Opportunities for Retailers

Level up for Customers’ Experience

Around 55% of consumers have higher expectations for customer service year after year, and admit it impacts their decision making when it comes to purchasing something. It is important to take into account basic human desires and even anticipate them. 

Thanks to VR, AR, or even XR (extended reality), enhanced AI, and social media incorporation, the metaverse offers unique virtual experiences, customization, and interactivity. This pushes the metaverse towards social commerce, which is an attractive factor for the new generation.   

Maximized Profitability

The ability to combine online and in-store shopping experiences gives the metaverse opportunity to push forward the omnichannel e-commerce that has the potential to retain customers. A study shows that so-called “omnichannel shoppers” have a 30% higher lifetime value than their one-channel counterparts. 

Meanwhile, NFTs are an easy gateway into selling digital items or incorporating them into your marketing strategy, increasing the range of offered products. 

Stronger Community Engagement

With new ways of communicating, metaverse E-commerce promotes deeper engagement and merges the worlds of E-commerce and social media. Brands will be able to use NFTs and pre-launch their collections or create entirely new digital products for their community. It will increase brand loyalty and the overall popularity of a metaverse eCommerce platform. 

High Matching Level for Customers Expectations

One of the main reasons for the high return rates of online purchases is the mismatch between expectations and reality. Whether it’s an inaccurate or too short description, or just not the right style, the buyer is still dissatisfied with the result: the couch does not fit in the living room or the color of the jacket does not suit my eyes. VR and AR help to get rid of this problem by offering users the immersive experience of seeing what an object looks like as close to reality as possible in the comfort of their homes.

Fast Growth on the Global Market

Metaverse platforms are available to anyone and in any location, which makes them universally accessible. Even more so, since it is a hot topic at the moment with promising market size outlook (year-over-year growth estimated at 33%), metaverse commerce has great long-term prospects.

How Big Ecommerce Companies Using Metaverse: Best Practice

Seeing how metaverse changes the digital world, big brands start to invest in it hoping to get the same momentum. 

• Nike, for example, created a whole universe within metaverse – Nikeland – and uses it to engage with customers, promote their brand and sell exclusive digital products. Moreover last year Nike released NFT sneakers that were bought for a total of 3.1 million dollars. They can rightly be called one of the forwards within metaverse brands.
• Another brand leaped into the metaverse is mobile giant Samsung. They created a virtual store made in the likeness of their physical store in NY, and it received 120,000 clients. 
• Even luxury brands like Gucci don’t miss the opportunity. In 2021 they collaborated with Roblox and sold NFT collectibles. One of those – a Dionysus bag – was sold for 4 thousand dollars. 

Metaverse-powered Innovations You Can Consider for Your eCommerce Business Today

Of course, every business is special and you need to approach the metaverse based on the specifics of the company, industry, and basic objectives. The list presented to your attention is just the beginning of what metaverse Ecommerce has to offer.

• Using AR or VR to allow customers to try on clothes with great precision 
• Cloning the physical objects and transferring them to the virtual worlds 
• NFTs can be used as a data source containing receipts, certificates of quality and originality, a gift to the most loyal customers, etc.
• Gamifying the brand, following the example of Louis Vuitton (they launched a celebratory game where users needed to find collectibles) with a possibility to attract the younger generation.

What is ProCoders Role in Ecommerce Metaverse Challenge

Do you want to try metaverse for Ecommerce platforms? At ProCoders we try our best to follow current trends and can offer our help in a number of different ways. 

First of all, we can do a Discovery Phase and analyze your business in terms of time, deadlines, budget, and possible tech stack. This is a great option for those who are just starting to feel the ground under their feet and want to check whether the business will be successful. 

If you don’t have a team but have a vision, we can create a Dedicated Team based on your specific needs and cover every stage of the development process. We have dozens of specialists fluent in 50+ Ruby, PHP and JavaScript tools at our disposal so nearly any customer’s request will be satisfied.

If you already have some engineers in your team, but some integral part is missing – staff augmentation is for you. Just like we match coders for a dedicated team, we can match selected individuals for you, only even faster. All our developers undergo rigorous testing of soft and hard skills, so we guarantee the high quality of the code on our part. 

If you are interested and want to revolutionize the world of E-Commerce by creating a virtual store, let’s schedule a call and find out what services you need! Our specialists can help you navigate through the deep waters of the metaverse and find a perfect solution for your business.

Conclusion

A good E-commerce platform can no longer look like a simple listing site or an application, you need to step out of your comfort zone and look for innovative solutions to attract customers. Metaverse is exactly one of those emerging technologies. 

Even more so, E-commerce is exactly the industry in which this technological advancement looks most native: the use of VR and AR for a more informed purchase decision, marketing and selling NFTs, the use of blockchain technology to ensure data security. In turn, metaverse сan significantly improve your platform’s operational capabilities and increase your customer retention rate, among other benefits discussed in this article.And if metaverse Ecommerce development seems like a very intimidating endeavor or you want to know how to profit from web 3.0 in general, here at ProCoders we’re happy to help you. Whether it’s a selection of one specialist or a whole team, we can quickly and efficiently put your business on its feet and give a boost to the development. You can check it yourself by contacting our specialists!